Kristen’s Spring Collection

Shot fashion formally/officially? for the first time yesterday. I’ve befriended a fashion design major who is ramping up for her final review and enlisted yours truly to make her pieces shine in the second dimension. Went out with these two models (friends) and the designer (also acted as stylist) and shot for a couple hours in a wonderful arboretum here in Boston. We were going somewhat for a whimsical and fantasyesque look, and for the most part I think that worked out. This bridge was featured a couple days ago here in my “location scouting” post (SEE HERE).

So the image. I quite like. Let’s start out with how it came about. To start, not my idea – I had’em both up top, ran out of ideas, and I think Maria (Girl Bottom) suggested she hop down. Kristen (designer) might have positioned them like this. She had been seeing some great angles’n setups all day (thanks!). It was an interesting process since I’m used to being in total control/just rolling with what I see, but throughout this shoot I definitely got some good suggestions and went with’em.

I think the focal point of the image is Girl Bottom’s face. She’s making direct eye contact with the lens (the audience), and that’s a pretty good magnet for my eyes. From there I don’t think there’s any particularly strong pull. My eyes make at least one jump into the background/down the stream, but tend to come back and look at the details of the clothes. The stances of both models worked out great I think. Girl Top’s legs, finished with those angular shoes, are wonderful. A very flowy shape for her/looks natural and comfortable. Girl Bottom has it going on with her arms which lead so well into one another. Perhaps they provide the leading line into the background, coming all the way from the edge of the frame.

Models man, it’s a whole new territory for me. Makes me want to assist someone who shoots work like this to learn how to do it more professionally myself. I suspect there’s decent freelance cash up for grabs for such work. However, I think a big part of that is straight glamor shot stuff which isn’t particularly thrilling to me. Shots like this, with a level of compositional complexity and whatnot, are much more what I’m into.